615
National Geographic Photographer David S. Boyer
Crewmen Let Down Bunks and Watch a Movie in A mberjack's Forward Torpedo Room
Normally the submariner works four hours and takes eight off. Each sub carries a 16-millimeter motion
picture projector and late-issue Hollywood films. When circumstances permit, sailors gather on deck or in
quarters and enjoy a show. Card playing is equally popular, and letter writing whiles away lots of time.
hundred submarines. We do not know what
the characteristics of these submarines may
be, but we do know that after the war Russia
obtained some of the most modern of German
submarines together with the east German
shipyards in which they were constructed and
the technicians who constructed them. We
must assume, therefore, that the Russian sub
marine fleet consists of ships which are not
only more numerous than the original German
fleet, but are, in part at least, equal to or
better than the submarines of latest and most
improved German design.
"We have made good progress in devising
means of meeting the submarine threat," Ad
miral Fechteler assured his audience, "and
the results of our tests and exercises lead me
to conclude that we are prepared to meet the
challenge if it comes, but not without sustain
ing losses, particularly in the early days of
a conflict." *
Strange though it may seem in view of the
demonstrated effectiveness of undersea war
fare, no navy has ever had a "true submarine,"
one capable of operating independently of
the atmosphere for long periods. All present
types are better described as submersible tor
pedo boats, for they can remain below snorkel
depth only a limited time.
First "True Sub" Now Possible
Although the snorkel boat (in crew par
lance the submarine is always a "boat," never
a "ship") is not a true submarine, that term
may apply to the world's first atomic-powered
sub, U.S.S. Nautilus, now being built at the
Electric Boat Division of General Dynamics
Corporation in Groton, Connecticut (page
635).
Uranium, the fuel which would be "burned"
in an atom sub, does not require air for its
reaction. Submarines thus could cruise in
definitely at great depth. The time would be
limited only by the crew's endurance and
their supply of oxygen for breathing.
* See also "Your Navy as Peace Insurance," by
Fleet Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, NATIONAL GEO
GRAPIIC MAGAZINE, June, 1946.